Remote control apparatus for door control mechanisms



A. R. DE VITO Feb. 9, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet .1

Filed Oct. 10, 1947 .1 ii TuHm 2 O r A A W .m On m E M n FIG.1

AT T OFPNEYS A. R- DE VITO Feb. 9, 1954 REMOTE-CONTROL APPARATUS FOR DOOR CONTROL MECHANISMS Filed 001;. 10, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 I, I ll I I I! 1/ I r 1 I 1 1 I I IN VEN TOR.

FIG. 3

ANGELO R. DEVrro ATTORNEYS A. R. DE VITO Feb. 9,1954

REMOTE-CONTROL APPARATUS FOR'DOOR CONTROL MECHANISMS Filed 00. 10, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 anyn INVENTOR. NGELO R. DEVITO ATTOFNEYSZ Patented Feb. 9, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE REMOTE' CONTROL APPARATUS FOR DOOR CONTROL MECHANISMS AngeloR'. de=Vit0,- Cleveland Heights, Ohio, as-

signor, by mesneassignments, to RudolphI. Schonitzer, Cleveland, Ohio Applicati'onOctbber. 10, 1947, SerialNo. 779,101

3 Claims. (Cl. 292-336.3)

This invention relates to door control apparatus and moreparticularly to an improved manually operableremote control mechanism" for use in connection with vehicle door latches.

It is frequently desired; in automobile door inst'allations or the like, to provide-a remote control mechanism whereby the door latch may be released from a point on the inside of the door spaced a substantial distance from the latch mechanismproper. In the Rudolph I. Schonitzer United States Patent No. 2,094,413 there is disclosed a remote control mechanism for door latches wherein an elongated rockable member isemployed' to effect'release of a door latch from inside the door. The present invention contemplates the employment of an elongated rockablemember or remote control shaft of the generar type disclosed in said Schonitzer. patent together with means'for' effecting" rocking or rotational movement thereof by movement of a handle or lever arm member in a plane generally parallel to the inner door panel.

Accordingly, it is an object. of the. present invention to provide an improved remote control mechanism for vehicle door latches or the like wherein a manually operable handle member, supported for movement generally parallel to the inner door panel, is employed.

Further objects of my invention include: the provision of a remote control mechanism, the components of which may be assembled in various positions relative to each other without change in their form whereby the same parts may be made up into units adapted to fulfill a wide range of different installation requirements; the provision of a remote control mechanism for door" latches which converts movement of a handle member in a plane generally parallel to the inner door panel into rotational movement of a remote control shaft which extends generally parallel to said door panel; the provision of remote control. mechanism of the type described which automatically takes care of misalient due to normal manufacturing variations in the door structure with which the apparatus is associated; the provision of a remote control mechanism which incorporates and includes means for returning all parts thereof to their neutral positions after actuation and also takes up hacklash and prevents rattles; the provision of a remote control mechanism for vehicle door latches which permits the glass run channels to be disposed relatively close to the inner door without interference with the travel'of the by the remote control mechanism; the provision ofimeans for permitting a handle member or the like to be selectively assembled in any one of a plurality of different angular positions relative to another element of the apparatus, thus accommodating different installation conditions or requirements; the provision. of handle operated remote control mechanisms of thetype described which may be installed on. doors with the axis of rotation of the handle disposed either above or below the remote control shaft; the provision of a compact, rugged, durable, and effectiveremote control mechanism for door latcheswhich is particularly well adapted to economical manufacture, which may readily be installed in various designs of door structures, and which will give trouble-free service for long periods of time; and the provision. of a remote control mechanism of the type described which, although especially well adapted for use with door latch mechanisms of the general type shown in said Rudolph I. Schonitzer Patent No. 2,094313, is also adapted for use. with. other types of door latch mechanisms.

The above and other objects of my invention will appear. from the following description of several embodiments thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a left-hand vehicle door, hinged at its forward edge, incorporating, my improved remote control mechanism, the view being taken from the inside of, the door, parts of the inner door panel being broken away more clearly to illustrate the door latch and remote control units, and the glass being shown in raised or closed position.

Figure 2 is a rear edge viewof the door shown in Figure 1, taken substantially on line. 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view, taken substantially on line 3--t of Figure 1 but the glass being shown in lowered or open position, illustrating one embodiment of my remote control mechanism.

Figure 4 is a detached fragmentary vertical cross-sectional view, taken substantially on line 4-4 of Figure 3, illustrating the cam and slide mechanism.

Figure. 5 is a view generally similar to Figure 4 but illustrating a modified form of cam and slide whereby movement of the operating handle in either direction from its door latched or neutral position will eifect release of the latch mechanism.

Figure 6 is a diagrammatic View to illustrate my improved cam and handle mounting arrangement whereby a plurality of different neutral handle positions may be obtained.

Figure 7 is a detached side elevational view, taken from the outside of the door in which the device is installed, illustrating a modified form of my remote control mechanism, the unit shown being the opposite hand from that shown in Figures 1 to 5 inclusive.

Figure 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken substantially on line 8-8 of Figure 7.

Figure 9 is a detached fragmentary vertical cross-sectional view, taken on line 9-9 of Figure 7, illustrating one of the supporting bearings for the remote control shaft. 7

Figure 10 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken substantially on line l--!il of Figure '7.

Figure 11 is a fragmentary horizontal crossdoor D may be considered to be the left-hand front door of an automobile, hinges l and 2 being provided at its forward edge whereby the door is suitably supported on the vehicle body (not shown). The inner door panel is indicated at 3, the outer door panel at 4, and the rear or free edge wall of the door structure at 5. In

'order releasably to retain the door D in closed position a latch mechanism, generally indicated at L, is disposed at the rear or free edge 5. As

illustrated this latch mechanism is of the type shown, described and claimed in the copending United States patent application of Edwin L. Allen, Serial No. 746,521, filed May 7, 1947. As the details of the latch mechanism per se form no part of the present invention it will be sufficient to point out here that the mechanism includes a latch member 6 supported for movement between door latched and door unlatched positions adjacent and generally parallel to the free edge Wall of the door. This latch memher 6 coacts with a suitable keeper pin or the like carried by the door frame (not shown) whereby the door may be held in closed and latched position.

The latch mechanism L also includes a detent control arm 1 pivotally supported on the latch frame at 8. As shown in Figure 2, the latch 'member 6 is in door latched position and the latch mechanism is such that when the arm I is moved clockwise from the position shown in Figure 2 the latch member 6 will be released, permitting movement thereof in counterclockwise direction into door unlatched position. Movement of the arm I to release the latch is effected by pressure on the outside push button unit 9. Also included in the latch mechanism L is a detent member I0 adapted releasably to hold the latch member 6 in door latched position. This detent It is moved from latch holding to latch released position by the above mentioned clockwise movement of the operating arm 1. A movable detent actuating member for effecting re lease of the latch, comprising a detent control pawl H, is also supported in the housing of the latch mechanism L for rotational movement and,

as illustrated, is positioned to directly engage detent l0 whereby rotation of the movable actuating member or pawl H in clockwise direction, as seen in Figure 2, will effect movement of detent l0 to release the latch member 5 and permit tangs 20.

the door to be opened. The arm 1 and pawl I I are independently operable to effect movement of detent If! to release latch member 6.

The remote control shaft i2 is operatively associated with the pawl l l in any suitable manner whereby rotational movement of shaft [2 causes corresponding movement of pawl Ii. As is best seen in Figure 1, the shaft [2 is disposed between the side walls 3 and 4 of door D and extends away from the free edge wall 5 toward the center of the door.

The length of shaft 12 determines the distance away from the free edge 5 of the door at which the remote control unit, generally indicated at R, is located and it will be understood that different door and body designs may require different positioning of the remote control mechanism relative to the latch mechanism proper.

As several embodiments of my improved remote control mechanism are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and as all of these embodiments have a number of elements in com.-

.mon while certain other elements, particularly the cam and slide, differ in the various embodiments, the same reference characters have been employed to indicate substantially identical elements in all the views. Accordingly reference is made to all of the figures for a full understanding of the form and arrangement of the parts which are common to all embodiments of my invention.

Referring now particularly to Figures 1 and 3 .it will be seen that the remote control mechasupporting plate l3 and bearing caps l8 and I9 (best seen in Figure '7) are secured thereto by The particular form of the bearing caps 18 and 19 will be more fully described later but it may be noted here that they, together with the bearing grooves I! provide spaced bearings for the remote control shaft l2. Spaced from the latch L and between the bearing caps I 8 and !9 the shaft I2 is provided with an offset or crank section 2| which, as is seen in Figure 3, extends away from the supporting plate l3. As

illustrated the offset section 21 is formed inte- Holes w and :3" are formed in plate i3 to accommodate the remote control shaft spring,

generally indicated at T, and plate i3 is formed with a channel portion 53" extending between the holes 13 and 13'. The features just described are best seen in Figures 7, 8 and 10. and it will be observed that channel portion l3"' projects from the plane of plate l3 in the opposite direction from bearing portions H and extends into the offset 2! of shaft E2. The functions of channel I'Zi are to stiffen the supporting plate is and also to provide stop means 00 operating with the offset 2! for preventing. undesirable longitudinal movement of shaft i2 relative to plate is. I

Secured to the supporting plate i3 by tangs 22 is a cam housing and slide member support; and guiding means 23. As clearly seen in Figure .3, this housing 23 is apertured to'form an inner bearing 2 forthe actuating .'or,carn

shaft-generally, indicated at 8; Supporting plate l ,3. is a1so aperturedat to formamouter'bearfrom and generally parallel toplate I3, and that it is open at top and bottom; Supported on shaft S for rotationtherewith, in a mannertobe more fully described later, is the cam member generally indicated, at C. This cam. has a fiattenedupperface 25 which, when the form of my remote control mechanism illustrated in Figures} and 4- is in its door latched or neutral position, is disposed substantially horizontally and in contact with the top flange 21 of the operating member or slide 28. This slidejZB has a verticallyextending elongated slot Z9Iformedtherein and is positionedin the hobsmg 23 with the endportion of the actuating or cam shaft S extending therethrough, thus permitting limited guided movementof the slide member 28 in the housing 2'3. As is best seen ln Figures 3 and 4, the cam C is operativelyas'sociated with the slide 23 which is a generally flat plate member the side edges 28 and 28 of which have arree sliding fit within the side Walls 23 and 23 of the housing. 23 whereby the slide 23 1 is guided for movement in a plane substantially normal to the" longitudinal axis of the remote control shaft l2. .The upper end of slide 28 is formed in generally C-shaped crosslsection as een in Figure 3,.the top flange 27 thereof having its upper surface in operative engagement with theofiset portion Zil of the shaft l2.

In order tourge the" remote control shaft I 2 and handle H toward neutral .or door latched position as shownin Figures 1 and3,l provide a double ended torsion spring T having spaced coil, portions, 31 and. 32 surroundi'ngshaft l2 and connected by an intermediate section 3.3 which is formed to fitharound. and engage the crank section 2 i of shaft l2 (seeFigur'es 1,]? and 10). The free end portions 34 and 35,0: the coilstl and 32 extend downwardly in engagement with the inner face of supporting plate 13' and, as the spring "I is installedin a pro-loaded condition, it atall times tends to rotate the shaft l2 and the offset crank portion 21 thereofjin counterclockwise direction (Figure 3') and thus to return the handle H to its normal doorlatch'ed or neutral position after latch. releasing move rnent. Spring '1'. also serves .to resiliently urge shaft 82 into the bearing grooves l'l in plate I 3.

The cam shaft 8 extends througha suitable opening 35 in the inner trinr i6 and has a squared innerend portion 31. The operating handle H. is

correspondingly recessed at 38 to fit the squared r,

end 37 of shaft 3' and may be secured thereon by any suitable meanssueh as a pin 39. Carried by the hub of the handle H is abezel 40 which extends to the inner trim is, of the door 33.

The operation of the above described embodiment of my remote control mechanism will now be described. As seen in Figures 1 and 2, the latch mechanism L is. in door latched position and accordingly my remote control mechanism als oappears in its door latched, non-releasing or neutral position. As illustrated, the handle 21 ex ends substantially vertically downwardly from thecarn shaft 3; audit will be noted. from Figures ,3 and l that the offsetportionzl cl. Shaft, i2 is in its lower position and is, held against the: upper surf-acerpf flange 211 to. slide 28 by the torsion spring So also, thefunder surface of flange 21 of slide 28: ishelddown against the flat, face 26' of cam C'. The engage ment of the fiat face 26 ofcam G with the-flat surface of flange 21 of the slidemember 28 eetablishes a stable condition in which further downward movement ofslide 28, or counterclockwise rotation (Figure-3) of shaft I2, under the influence of spring T is prevented. As will be later more fully explained a positive stop against movement of cam C, slide 28, andshaft lZ- beyond the positions shown in Figuresl to t is provided by the edge face 44 of cam Q The connection between the outer end of" shaft l2 and the latch mechanism Lis such that when the remote control" unit R is inthis non-releasing or neutral position the latchmechanism L will, unless actuated by the outside push button 9, remainlatched with the detent lil holdiuglthe latch member 6 in door latched position.

Now, if'it is desired to open the vehicle door from the inside, the operator moves the handle H, about its axis of rotation (the longitudinal center line of camshaft S) from the full line position into the position shown in dot and dash lines in' Figure 1. This movement causes the cam C to move from the full line position shown in Figure 4 into the dot and dash line position shown therein and the: rounded end portion ll of cam C will ride against the under surface of flange 21 of slide 28 thus lifting theslide 28; into the dot and dash line position shown in Figure 4 and causing'the crank section 2| and shaft [2 to be rotated in clockwise direction as seen in Figure 3 through the angle indicated by the arrow. This movement is against thespririg T and causes corresponding movement of the pawl II to move-.detentlll and release the latch member16, permitting opening ofthe door D; As soon as the operatorreleases the handle H it is re-' turned fromthe phantom lineposition' of Figure 1 into its normal or neutral position shown. in full linesinulligure 1' by the spring T, this return movement causing no action of latch L and being permitted by the form of the pawl l1! anddetent l0. Also, as the pawl H and arm? I are independently operable, either-the outside pushbut ton 9 or-theremote control handle B may be moved between their door latched and: latch re--' leased positions without causing any movement ofthe other. Upward or latch releasing movement of the slide 28 is limited by lugs 42 and t3 whichcas is seen in phantom lines in Figure l, engage the sidewalls 23 and 23 respectively of the housing 23when the handle H andacam' C arerotated into their door unlatchedpositions. Movement'of the handle H in clockwise direction (Figural) beyond its door latched or neutral position is prevented, in the embodiment of my invention shown in Figures 1 to 4 inclusive; by means of the edge face sectioned of cam G which, whenthe'h'andle H is in door latched position, engages the inner face of the side wall 25% (Figure 4) of the housing 23 thus preventing further movement. of the cam C, earn shaft-S, or handle H in clockwise direction. l V

Iii-Figure 5, which is generally similar to Fig-'- re-i, I have illustrated a modified form of cam- C" having a flat face 45' and opposed similar roundedendportions 46 and 41 Eachof these rounded and portions is generally similar to the portion.v 4 1 of earn 0 and performs ,s'ubstantially thefsamefunction. However, as the lower porq 7 tion of cam C isf'ormed on a radius about the camshaft S, the handle H, when the cam C is .used, may be moved in either direction from its door unlatched or neutral position (indicated in Figure 5 by the center line 48). Thus when the handle H moves from the position indicated by center line 48 into position indicated by center line 49 (Figure 5) the rounded end portion 46 of cam C engages the underside of flange 21 and lifts the slide member 28 causing the latch to be released as previously described. In like manner, if the handle His moved in clockwise direction from the neutral position indicated by center line '48 into the position indicated by center line 50 the rounded end portion 4'! of cam C engages flange 2'! and lifts the slide 28, with corresponding movement of the shaft I2, to cause release of the latch mechanism L. g

It will be noted that in the embodiments of my invention illustrated in Figures 1 to 5 inclusive the cams C or C engage one side of the flange 21 of slide 25 while the offset section 2I of remote control shaft I2 is engaged by the opposite side of flange 21. With this arrangement, if it is desired to increase or decrease the distance between the longitudinal center line of the remote control shaft I2 and the longitudinal center line of the transversely extending cam shaft S it is necessary to change the form of the cam C as well as that of slide member 5|, which corresponds in function to slide 28, is disposed between the cam C" and the supporting plate I3. At its upper end the slide 5| has an outwardly extending cam engaging portion 52 (see Figure 8), an upwardly extending portion 53, and an inwardly bent upwardly inclined crank engaging portion 54. By inclining portion 54 relative to the path of movement of slide 5| the downward (Figure 8) pressure of crank 2| on portion 54 will tendto urge the top part of slide 5| toward plate I3 and the bottom part away from plate I3, thus avoiding binding or digging in of the lower edge of slide 5! against plate I3. Slide 5| is provided with an elongated slot 55 which fits over the cam shaft S and is provided with side flanges 55 (see Figure 11.) which have sliding engagement with the sides of the cam housing 23'. Vertical movement of slide 5| is limited by engagement of the ends of slot 55 with shaft S.

Cam shaft S is supported in a bearing 25 in the supporting plate I3 and in a bearing 24' in the housing 23'. Cam C is secured to and rotatable with the shaft S, as will be more fully described later, and shaft S has a squared handle carrying end portion 31 on which an operating handle may be mounted'as previously described. As may be seen in Figures I and 12 the contour of cam C" includes a flat portion 5'! and an adjoining curved portion 58. When the parts are in the door latched or neutral position as seen in Figure '7 the portion 52 of slide 5| is in engagement with the flat portion 51 of cam C". Further movement of the cam 0 in counterclockwisedirection (as seen in Figure 7)' beyond neutral position is prevented by engagement of the edge portion 59' of carrfC" with the side flange 56 of slide 5|. Movement of the handle and shaft S in clockwise (Figure 7) or latch releasing direction is permitted however and will rotate the cam C" into its door unlatched position as seen in Figure 12. This movement will lift the slide 5| from the position shown in Figure "7 to that shown in Figure 12 with corresponding rotation of the remote control shaft I2 which rotation will effect release of the latch mechanism L and permit opening of the door. As seen in Figure 12 the lower end of slot 55 engages shaft S to limit upward movement of slide 5| and clockwise movement of cam C". By forming the cam C" with the curved section 58 adjacent the flat portion 51 a somewhat greater angular movement of the handle H is required to effect the required degree of rotation of remote control shaft I2 than is required with the cam forms shown in Figures 4 and 5. Further, the point of contact of cam C" and portion 52 of slide 5| always remains sufficiently far away from a vertical plane through the center line of shaft S to insure that spring T will always return handle H to its neutral position after actuation.

With the cam and slide arrangement illustrated in Figures 7 to 12 inclusive the shaft S may be moved toward or away from the shaft I2 by varying the location of its supporting bearings in the plate I3 and housing 23'. If such changes are made in the spacing of the cam shaft bearings from the shaft I2 no change in the size or form of the cam C will be required and it will merely be necessary to make the upwardly extending portion 53 of slide 5| longer or shorter so that the crank engaging portion 54 will properly engage the crank section 2| of shaft I2. Thus the embodiment of my invention illustrated in Figures '7 to 12 inclusive may readily be adapted, with a minimum of manufacturing changes, to the production of remote control units suitable for various installation, conditions.

. Figures 9 and 10 clearly illustrate the supporting bearings for the shaft I2. As previously noted the bearings for the shaft I2 are formed by groove portions IT in the supporting plate I3 and the bearing caps I8 and I9 which are secured to the plate I3 by tangs 20. The grooves I! are contoured to fit the shaft I2 but the bearing caps I8 and I9 are extended so that the bearing apertures, instead of being round in cross, section are elongated as is clearly seen in Figure 9. It will also be noted from Figure 10 that the bearing grooves in the caps I8 and I9 are flared outwardly from a center portion of minimum diameter to end portions of maximum diameter. With this bearing support arrangement the shaft I2 is held against any substantial vertical movement or play but may have a certain degree of horizontal displacement relative to plate I3. This arrangement is desirable in order to take care of horizontal misalignment due to manufacturing inaccuracies in the inner door panel. 3 which would otherwise result in binding or excessive friction of the shaft I2 in its bearings, it being understood that shaft I2 may be mounted in proper vertical alignment with the pawl H by the oversize slots I4 (see Figures'B and 7) in the plate I3 through whichmounting screws I4 extend.

As is best seen in FigureB, my remote control mechanismis relatively thin in its overall transverse'cross section1 jandjwhen mounted door extends only a small distance from" the inner 9 door'panel 3 into the space between. panels 3 and This permits the glass run channels. or guides D' and the glass D to be disposed relatively close to the inner panel 3 Without interference from the remote control mechanism.

Another feature of my remote control mechanism is its adaptability to assembly variationa Without change. in the size or form of the com ponent parts, whereby remote control units be readily made up as. right-hand or leit-hand units, the rotation of the operating handle may be clockwise, counterclockwise, or both, the re mote control shaft may extendiorwardly o wardly from the handle member, the cam shaft. may be disposed either above or below the remote control shaft, etc. If, ,for example, it should be desired to produce a device like that oi Figures 1,, 3- and i except that the handle H have movement toward instead of away from, 5- of door D it is only necessary to turn over the cam Cwhen assembling it on shaft S so that proiection it extends toward edge wall 23? of hone ing 23 instead of toward edge wallv 23*.

When a handle, such as. handle H described above, is employed for operating a vehicle door latch remote control mechanism it. should preferably be so disposed adjacent the inner door panels; asnot to interfere with the comfort of the vehicle passengers, to be readily accessible, and to have .themost desirable path of movement. from the standpoint of safety and operator convenience. To fulfill these requirements on different body styles and designs it is desirable that the operating handle H of the remote control mechanism be arranged so that, it can readily be assembled to have the desired neutralangular position and direction of movement for the particular installation with Whichthe mechanism is used. I, accomplish this result by providing a driving or cam carrying section oi regular polysonal cross section and a handle carrying section, also of regular polygonal orosssection, on the cam shaft of my remote. control mechanism, the cam being apertured correspondingly to the driving section and the. handlegbeing apertured correspondingly to the handle carrying section, the polygonal driving section having a, number oi-sides differing from the number of sides of the polygonal handle carrying section, and acornor of the polygonal driving section being in radial alignment with a corner of thepolygonal handle carrying section.

In the embodiments of my invention shown in Figures 1 to 6 the driving or cam carrying section 60 of the cam shaft S is of pentagonal cross section and, as previously noted, the handle carrying section 31 is of square cross section. As is seen in Figure 5 the top corner of the square section 3'! is in radial alignment with the top corner of the pentagonal section ea. The cam C is formed with a pentagonal aperture and may have a press fit on the pentagonal section to or be welded, brazed or otherwise rigidly secured thereto. It will be understood that in assembling the device the cam C (or C" as the case mat be) maybe assembled with the fiat face 26 disposed in any one of 5 different positions relative to the shaft S. So also, the handleH'may be disposed on the square section 31 of the shaft S in any one of four different positions relative to the shaft S. By arranging the polygonal sections as described and by having the number of sides of one polygonal section diifer from one from the number of sides of the other polygonal section I am able to obtain a series of selective 10 positions of; the handle relative to the cam Q; equal in number to the product of the number oi sides of one polygonal, section and the number of sides of the other polygonal section, Thus, in the embodiment justdescribed the number of positions of the handle H relative to the cam C is the product of 5 and 4, or impossible different positions.

It will be seen from the above explanation that, by assemblyi'ng the cam C on the driving section lid in the proper position and by selecting the proper position of the handle H on the handle carrying section 31, the handle I-i may be arranged in any one of 20 different angular positions, spaced 18 degrees apart, relative to cam C. This permits my improved remote control mechanism readily to be adapted to a wide range of installation conditions regardless,v of whether it is desired to have the handle, when in neutral position, extendupwardly, downwardly, horizontally, or in any one of a large number of intermediate directions.

In Figure 6 the full lines. illustrate diagrammatically one neutral. position of th handle H and com 0. on the shaft 5. In dot and: dash lines I have indicated how the parts may be assem bled so that the neutral position of handle H is shifted 18 in counterclockwise direction without changing the neutral position ofthe cam C. This change is accomplished by turning the shaft S 72 (one step of the pentagonal section 68) in counterclockwise direction relative to Gain C into the dot and dash line position of Figure 6 and then inserting section 6d into the aperture in cam C. In so changing the assembled relation of cam C and shaft S the cam C is held in its original position but the side a the pentagon 86 is moved to the position indicated at a" and the other sides of the pentagon each move in similar mannerone '72" step in counterclockwise direction. During this 72 counterclockwise movement of the shaft S the bottom corner A of the square section 31 will, of course, aiso move through '72 in counterclockwise direction to the position indicated at A and the corner B will move to the position indicated at B" in dot and dash lines. From the above explanation itw'il'l be seen that if the handle H is now position-ed on the square section 3i of shaft S as indicated in dot and dash lines in Figure 6 so that it extends on a radius passing through the new position B of corner B of square section 31, it will have a neutral or door latched position whichis 18 removed in clockwise direction from the full line position shown in Figure 6. By similar manipulation of the position-0f shaft S and handle H relative to the cam C as the parts are assembled together the handle H may be located in any one of 20 different equally spaced neutral positions while cam G is maintained in the same neutral position.

In the embodiment shown in Figures '7 to '12 inclusive the polygonal driving section 6| of shaft S is hexagonal form while the shaft carrying section 3"! remains square in cross section. With this arrangement th number of possible positions of the handle H relative to cam C- will equal the product of the number of sides of the driving section 6| and'the number of sides of the handle section 31' divided by two or 6X4 12 Thus, with this selection of polygonal sections the handle maybe set in anyone of 12 different radialpositions while the cam 6 remains in its normal door latched or neutral position as seen in Figure 7. Accordingly, where the maximum number of closely spaced handle positions is desired an arrangement of the type shown in Figures 1 to 6, employing polygonal driving and handle sections having numbers of sides differing by one, is preferable while if a lesser number of positions of the parts is satisfactory an arrangement of the type shown in Figures 7 to 12 may be employed. It will also be understood that although the herein described means for varying the relative positions of two members carried on a shaft or the like is illustrated as applied to my remote control mechanism it may be used in many other mechanical assemblies where such variation is desired.

Although I have described the illustrated embodiments of my invention in considerable detail it will be understood that variations may be made in the form, proportions, and arrangement of the parts which make up my improved remote control mechanism. For example, although the axis of cam shaft S is illustrated as extending substantially at right angles to the axis of remote control shaft 12 this angular relation could be varied to arrange shafts S and H2 in other nonparallel relations as required to meet different conditions. Also, the remote control shaft l2, which is shown herein as operatively connected to a pawl member ll could be associated with any suitable element of a latch mechanism so long as the rotational movement of shaft 12 is effective to release the latch and permit opening of the door. I do not therefore wish to be limited to the particular embodiments herein shown and described but claim as my invention all forms thereof coming within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Remote control mechanism for a door latch 1 having a movable member for effecting release of said latch from door latched position including, a remote control shaft adapted to be connected to said movable member, said remote control shaft having an offset section, a supporting member adapted to be secured to the door with which the mechanism is associated, spaced remote control shaft bearings carried by said supporting member, said remote control shaft bein carried by said bearings with said offset section disposed therebetween, spring means extendin between said supporting member and said offset section and tending to rotate said remote control shaft in one direction, said bearings being elongated in a direction away from said supporting member and adapted to prevent displacement of the axis of rotation of said remote control shaft in a plane parallel to said supporting member while permitting limited displacement of said axis in a plane transverse to said supporting member, a slide member, means carried by said supporting member for guiding said slide member for lineal movement substantially normal to the axis of rotation of said remote control shaft, said slide member having a flange portion the outer surface of which is in engagement with said offset section, a cam shaft rotatably supported by said supporting member and having its axis of rotation extending in nonparallel relation to said axis of rotation of said remote control shaft, a cam carried by said cam shaft and rotatable therewith, said cam having operating engagement with the inner surface of said flange portion of said slide member whereby rotation of said cam in one direction moves said slide member and said offset section of said remote control shaft with resulting rotation thereof, said cam having a flat portion and said inner surface of said flange on said slide member having a corresponding flat portion, said flat portions being positioned to be in engagement when said remote control shaft is in neutral or nonreleasing position relative to said latch, said spring means, acting on said cam through said offset section and said slide member, tending to hold said cam in said non-releasing position and to return it thereto when moved toward releasing position, and manually operable handle means for rotating said cam shaft.

2. Remote control mechanism for a door latch comprising, a remote control shaft adapted to be operatively connected at one end to the door latch whereby rotation of said remote control shaft will effect releasing of the door latch, said remote control shaft having an ofiset section spaced from said one end thereof, a supporting member adapted to be secured to the door with which the mechanism is associated, spaced remote control shaft bearings carried by said supporting member, said remote control shaft being supported in said bearings with said offset section disposed therebetween, a spring member extending between said supporting member and one side of said offset section and tending to rotate said remote control shaft in one direction, a slide member, a cam housing member carried by said supporting member and having an outer face portion and spaced parallel side walls, said side walls being disposed to guide said slide member for lineal movement substantially normal to the axis of rotation of said remote control shaft, said slide member having a shaft engaging surface disposed in contact with the opposite side of said offset section of said remote control shaft from said spring member and said spring holding said offset section in contact with said shaft engag ing surface, a cam shaft rotatably supported by said supporting member and said cam housing member and having its axis of rotation extending in non-parallel relation to said axis of rotation of said remote control shaft, a cam carried by said cam shaft and rotatable therewith between said housing and said supporting member, said cam having operative engagement with another surface on said slide member, said other surface being spaced toward said cam shaft from and extending substantially parallel to said first named surface on said slide member, said cam having a contour whereby rotation of said cam shaft in one direction moves said slide member toward said remote control shaft and said offset section in a direction to rotate said remote control shaft against the action of said spring member, and manually operable means for rotating said cam shaft.

3. Remote control mechanism for a door latch comprising, a remote control shaft adapted tobe operatively connected at one end to the door latch whereby rotation of said remote control shaft will effect releasing of the door latch, said remote control shaft having an offset section spaced from said one end thereof, a supporting member adapted to be secured to the door with which the mechanism is associated, spaced remote control shaft bearings carried by said supporting member, said remote control shaft being supported in said bearings with said offset section disposed therebetween, said bearings being enlongated in a direction away from said supporting member and adapted to prevent displacement of the axis of rotation of said remote control shaft in a plane parallel to said support- 13 ing member while permitting limited displacement of said axis in a plane transverse to said supporting member, a spring member extending between said supporting member and one side of said offset section and tending to rotate said remote control shaft in one direction, a slide member, a cam housing member carried by said supporting member and having an outer face portion and spaced parallel side walls, said side walls being disposed to guide said slide member for lineal movement substantially normal to the axis of rotation of said remote control shaft, said slide member having a shaft engaging surface disposed in contact with the opposite side of said oifset section of said remote control shaft from said spring member and said spring holding said ofiset section in contact with said shaft engaging surface, a cam shaft rotatably supported by said supporting member and said cam housing member and having its axis of rotation extending in non-parallel relation to said axis of rotation of said remote control shaft, a cam carried by said cam shaft and rotatable therewith between said housing and said supporting member, said cam having operative engagement with another surface on said slide member, said other surface being spaced toward said cam shaft 14 from and extending substantially parallel to said first named surface on said slide member, said cam having a contour whereby rotation of said cam shaft in one direction moves said slide member toward said remote control shaft and said offset section in a direction to rotate said remote control shaft against the action of said spring member, and manually operable means for rotating said cam shaft.

ANGELO R. DE VITO.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

